Paul Krugman (CUNY): Globalization: What Did We Miss? The “madman” behind Trump’s trade theory: Peter Navarro — a business-school professor, a get-rich guru, a former Peace Corps member, and a former Democrat — is among the most important generals in Trump’s trade war. Trump’s tariffs haven’t really transformed trade — yet. America’s postindustrial futures: The current administration’s controversial “America First” trade policies have tapped into a pervasive feeling of abandonment across the postindustrial United States — but not all former factory workers are interested in reviving American industry. The single most important vote of the 116th Congress will be on trade: specifically, the NAFTA replacement — we have absolutely no idea where the new legislators stand on it.

The strange ethics of killing John Allen Chau: What the violent death of an American missionary on a far-flung island might say about the rest of us. “First contact”: What a missionary’s death tells us about the perils of colonialism.

From Public Seminar, a symposium on the principles and possibilities of social democracy and liberal democracy in our current political times, with contributions by Michael Walzer, Sheri Berman, Leo Casey, and Jeffrey C. Isaac. Is more democracy always better democracy? Yascha Mounk reviewsResponsible Parties: Saving Democracy from Itself by Frances McCall Rosenbluth and Ian Shapiro. Empower political parties to revive democratic accountability: The shrill cry that American democracy is dying rests on a misdiagnosis — if anything, we have introduced too much democracy in the wrong places. Immigrants will be vital to the future of American democracy. Worry less about crumbling roads, more about crumbling libraries: America’s social infrastructure is falling apart, and it’s hurting democracy. If you’ve lost hope in American democracy, here’s some good news.